7 Critical Factors You Must Know Before You Play Any Hand In Texas Hold’em Poker

Being a poker professional I receive tons of emails and questions about how to play certain hands or what I would do in a particular situation. In this article I’ve outlined seven critical factors you need to be aware of any time you play Texas Hold’em poker. Use this article as an outline to help make the best possible decisions when playing poker. All of these factors are very important to understand if you want to be a successful Texas Holdem player. 1. Table Position. The first thing to notice when playing Holdem is where you’re at on the table. There are good positions and bad positions. The best position is when you’re on the button. That is the Dealer Button. The reason for this is because you get to act last and see what everyone else does before you. The worst position in my opinion is the small blind. Since you have a little money already in the pot you may play marginal hands that you wouldn’t otherwise. Thus you get yourself into a lot more pots when you really shouldn’t be. Most of the time these come back to bite you. 2. The Read on Your Opponents The read you have on your opponents is all important. Depending if you’re playing against real loose players or real tight players will greatly help in choosing what hands to play and how to play them. The best way to get a read on your opponents is to simply watch how they play when you’re not playing. 3. Number of Players at the Table The number of people at a table is important mainly because it will increase or decrease the strength of your hand. If you have a full table of ten you’re A,T suited won’t be nearly as strong as if your playing at a short-handed table of five or six. All of a sudden that A,T suited is now very strong. 4. Number of Players in the Hand This goes along with rule number two but with a slight variation. When everyone at a full table folds except for you and one opponent; immediately your hand strength has grown stronger. However, you need to be aware of one thing. You must be aware of all the other cards that were folded. Granted you won’t know what they were but you can make an educated guess based on the read you have on other players. Most of the time your opponents folded because they didn’t catch a monster hand. Even if there are loose players at the table and they folded. You know they folded junk or they would still be in the hand. Therefore if you have a low to middle pair the likelihood of you hitting trips on the flop diminishes. So you need to proceed with caution. On the other hand if you have A,Q suited be aggressive in your play. 5. Your Cards What are your cards? This is important. Right? Now you will see some of the pros talk about how they don’t even have to look at their cards sometimes because they know their opponents so well. If you’re reading this my guess is you’re not one of them. Therefore, the cards we’re dealt have a dramatic impact on our ability to win. We must be patient. And when the right hands are dealt we need to be ready to pounce and win big pots. 6. Chip Stacks The reason chip stacks are important is because people play differently when the size of their chip stack changes. For example, if you’re the short stack you may play more tightly waiting for that right hand. At the same time if you’re the chip leader you may get so aggressive and try to bully people around and steal blinds. Now I’m not saying either way is the right or wrong way to play. It’s just important to know how your opponents begin to change their play as their chip stacks change. How do you change your play when you’re the short stack or the chip leader? 7. Table Action What’s going on before you? Does the guy to your right always lay down big raises? It’s important to pay close attention to what the action is doing before it comes to you. If someone raises, and then two people reraise and you’re sitting on QQ you may want to lay it down. You can safely assume someone if not two people have AA and KK leaving you on the short end of the stick if you choose to play. Remember, poker takes a minute to learn and a lifetime to master. Understand and use these seven critical factors to help you master the game and win a lot more when you play Texas Holdem poker. Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet PokerStars Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker About the Author: PD Laughlin is an author and professional Texas Holdem player. He has done extensive research and discovered the very best way to earn a living playing online poker. Discover his secrets at http://www.win-at-holdem.com. Read more articles by: PD LaughlinArticle Source: www.iSnare.com

Warning to new poker players

Here is what happened to me when I first started playing poker online. I registered and made my first deposit. I was a little nervous so I watched for a while until finally I got the nerve to sit down at 5/1 single table sit and go Hold'em tournament ($5 to the prize pool $1 to the poker room). Before I tell you what happened next let me warn you that it is one of the most dangerous things that can happen to a new poker player. Brace yourself...I finished in the money! In fact that day I played 6 sit and go's and won or finished in the money 4 times. What's so dangerous about that? Wow that's great! I can here you saying. The problem is when you get lucky early on you begin to think you are a better poker player than you are. You become over confidence and when your hot streak ends (it always does) and the cards run cold it can be a very expensive lesson indeed. My initial deposit was about $150 and my first weekend playing online I turned it into nearly $600. I was making $8 bucks an hour at the time and not making ends meet and I'd just made $600 in about 12 hours! That works out to be $50 per hour! "I CAN QUIT MY JOB!" I thought. Over the next couple of weeks I was up $1800 total and to be honest it was mostly blind luck. Somewhere around the third week the inevitable started to happen suddenly the cards weren't going my way. And over the next month I went from being up almost two grand to being $1000 in the hole. I couldn't afford to lose a $1000, hell I couldn't afford to lose my initial $150 deposit. One of two things seems to happen to most people when they go through this. Many give up poker thinking that they just don't have what it takes. Others blindly forge ahead believing there luck will change and eventually it does. But because they do nothing to improve their ability they become long term losers. They think that eventually they'll take down a huge pot that will eventually put them ahead while the true pro's sit there quietly building their stacks on the mistakes of those who rely on luck and self delusion. What I chose to do is go to school. I knew that you could make a living people playing poker if you had the right combination of skill, experience and cunning. I also new that I was sick of barely getting by and living pay check to pay check. Since then I've read at least a hundred books on poker and spent thousands of hours honing my skills and a dozen online poker rooms. I've taken hundreds of pages of notes and spent hours analyzing my play. Now I make my living playing poker online. Is it worth it? I think so. Until next time...You've been warned! Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet PokerStars Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker

Playing Poker: What Motivates The Top Poker Players

Why do we play poker? But especially why do you play poker? This might strike you as an odd question but it is very important for your future success in the world of poker. The reason why you play poker is at least as important as the way you play poker. We can categorize somehow the reasons why we play poker, we can properly analyze them and after that we can use them to improve our actual gaming style. If we could ask several hundreds of players “Why do you play poker?” the odds are quite big that their answer would be “For the money”. But if we could access their last year statistics we would see that some just didn’t win any money at all, or at least that they didn’t win more that they lost. If money is the only reason these people play poker they why do they keep on doing it? Of course, there are many more answers that they don’t really want to admit. This happens because there are many other motivations that push us to play poker just as great as the desire to win many, but many of them are even greater. And when you come to think about it, you can surely find many many reasons: fun, the love of the game, competition, making friends, the desire to beat the best there is in the world of poker, and the list can go on and on. But if you understand the various reasons behind your game you will eventually manage to change your view about winning and losing or you will be able to choose the perfectly fit games for you, the ones that will bring you the most success. In his book, “The Psychology of Poker”, Alan N. Shoonmaker explains in detail the importance of understanding personal impulses in order to find the answer to the question “Why do we play poker?” I will take the liberty to speak a little bit about this theory. Take a pen and a piece of paper and write down the following: Money Making friends Relaxing Pleasure Competition Just passing time If you can think of additional reasons, write those down also. Now you will have to think hard and find within yourselves the real reasons you play poker for. Once you did that, write after each reason a percentage, even if it is 0%, just keep in mind that all of them added must equal 100%. If someone would play poker 20% for Money, 10% for relaxation, 50% for pleasure and the remaining 20% for competition, then he would be what is called a loose player most of the time, playing many hands and staying in the game as much as he can just for the thrill of being there. This is the most important thing for him and it influences his style of playing. If you manage to carefully and correctly analyze your own situation you can eventually change some parts of your game you don’t like or improve the ones that you consider are good. In many types of competitions, the battle is firstly within yourself and only after that with your opponents. Bad mistakes in poker are made when you are too proud, when you question your ability and doubt your self all the time, when you are too scared or shy when you must take an action or when your thoughts are just somewhere else. If you play poker just with friends to pass the time, then you must choose games with low bids, so your bankroll will last longer. If you are playing to relax then stay out of the games with poker fanatics and choose some games with less involved players. The answers can be various and they only depend on you. But answering the question is a must if you wish to improve your game.Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet PokerStars Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker

Book Review: The Zen and The Art of Poker

There are thousands of books on the subject of poker and dozens of good ones. Most good poker books have a learning curve that takes some time and practice for you to apply effectively. Learning to calculate odds for example; while it is essential to your long term success initially applying it to your play will slow you down and cost you money. The Zen and The Art of Poker by Larry W. Phillips is one of the few books that can improve your game just by reading it. Don't be put off by the title there is some solid poker strategy and advice that while it is deceptively simple; it is also the foundation for a long and profitable poker career. From the publisher: "Know when to hold, when fold...and play each hand like a master Zen and the art of poker will give the edge as it improves your game and show you how to: Fit yourself into the flow of the game Learn to use inaction as a weapon Pick you times of confrontation Master yourself, not the game Take the long view Play on instinct Prepare for worst-case scenarios Deal with losses, errors, and failure Avoid self-defeating strategies ...And more" The Zen and The Art of Poker is one of The Modern Grinder's most recommended book on poker for players of all skill levels. More from the Recommended reading list here.

Poker: What they don't show you on tv.

The World Poker Tour on discover Chanel is one of the biggest factors in growth and popularity poker probably second only to the internet poker sites. People don't seem to realize that what you seen is edited for maximum entertainment value and not the tournament in it's entirety. What you see on is basically like a NFL highlight real. A major poker tournament like the WPT is a multi-day event with an average 500 of players. What you get to see are the highlights of the final day and final table edited into a 2 hour episode. What you do see: What you don't see is hand after hand being folded. You don't see much of the boredom and frustration on the player's faces as they sit their hour after hour waiting for a hand and not much else happing. You don't see many of the hands that unfold in a predictable way (i.e the stronger hand beating the weaker hand). You don't see everyone folding to the blind. That wouldn't make very good television. The ability to deal with the boredom and avoid the temptation to play more handset than they should, even with threat of ever increasing blinds and antes, is the mark of a seasoned pro. A pro is usues this time to absorb information about their opponents to use as ammunition later in the tourney. Most of the players in a WSOP or WPT final event are season poker pros. Newbies can get lucky and make a final table but that's the exception not the rule. When they make those crazy plays they do so for a reason. For example when Doyle Brunson calls an all-in bet with a pair of threes in the video below he is drawing and decades of experience. People inspired by televised poker often play well above their heads by trying to make some of the fancy plays they see the pros make. They lack the experience to know when to bluff or slow play a hand. Of course you won't make the same mistake but you can profit from those who do. Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker

4 Poker Tips The Pros Won't Tell You

In the past few years, professional poker playing has exploded in popularity. The biggest players are winning substantial amounts of money. However, none of the professional poker players are sharing their secrets. In reality, the best players in the world aren’t doing anything really spectacular other than following basic poker tips. What makes the best players so amazing is their ability to utilize all of their strengths and capitalize on the weaknesses of others. Anyone can significantly improve his or her poker game by following these four easy tips. 1. Observe your opponents. This is probably the most crucial part of poker. When playing against someone, the more you know about them, the easier it will be for you to take advantage of their weaknesses. It is always a good idea to observe an opponent's betting habits. Some players bet extremely high when they have a good hand. Other players will attempt to make several seemingly small raises. Anyone who consistently raises after each flop might have a good hand. However, some players will try to bluff. Noticing patterns can help you adjust to the moves of your opponents. This will help you save money, and possibly have great gains. 2. Bet wisely and watch your money. Every poker player should set limits when going into the casino. The pros don’t have to worry about money so much, but the average player definitely does. Set a limit and do not exceed it. Being money conscious can help ensure that if you have a bad day at the tables, you don’t put yourself in debt. Along with managing money is managing bets. Some players like to bet high (high rollers), but this can lead to drastic losses. Some of the best players bet moderately, and increase their bets slightly when they have a good hand. The best advice for betting is “avoid the extremes.” Don’t bet too little, because you will end up losing money in the long run. At the same time, don’t bet too much because you might lose a lot of money on only one hand, and that is never good. 3. Take your time. The pros seem to think very fast, but that is because they are pros! You don’t have to make decisions too rashly. Take time to look at your hand and figure out what you have and bet accordingly. Also, take the time to survey your opponents and surmise what hands they might have. The pros are always thinking and are simply faster than the average player. It is important to realize that every poker player has to think logically and make educated guesses. 4. Know when to fold, and when to stay in. Many players do not understand the best solutions for folding or staying in. The best players understand their chances and only stay in when they have at least one type of hand. Having two face cards is a good reason to stay in, but having two different low number cards might not be such a strong hand. When observing other players, if you notice high bets from a player who does not bluff, then you should probably fold. Knowing when to take risks and when to be conservative is a very important element to being a solid poker player. The pros may seem like they are doing impossible things, but they are really just following basic tips. Poker is a game of chance, but you can always tip the odds in your favor by studying your opponents, being smart with money and betting, and thinking through your decisions. Play smart and you will notice a great increase in your poker winnings. Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet PokerStars Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker About the Author:Paul Runyan enjoys writing about all things poker, including news and commentary. Learn more at http://www.geniuspoker.comRead more articles by: Paul Runyan Article Source: www.iSnare.com

To Show or Not to Show that is the Question!

Do you show your cards when you've folded your pocket kings to show what a good lay down you are making? What about when you've forced everyone out of the had, do you show off your daring bluff? For me the answer to this question is a simple no. Poker is a game of decision making and providing your opponents with more information than you have to is a bad idea. However, there are exceptions to almost every tactic in poker. When you show make sure you do it for a specific reason. For example you have nothing and bluff an opponent out of a big pot. You've been watching him and are pretty sure that you can put him on tilt by showing off your bluff. Just make sure when you make the decision to show your cards you have a good reason and that is not based in emotion or to show off what a brilliant play you just made. Never do anything only to gain approval or respect of your opponents. The pride and self respect that only comes in time from being a consistent winner is all the respect you need. Poker Resources Featured Poker Rooms: Absolute Poker Full Tilt Poker UltimateBet PokerStars Learn to Play Poker Profitably the right way: Sit N Go Pro Outstanding Poker